What the fuck am I doing?
This can’t happen.
Never.
Hailey’s not meant for my world.
I should leave her alone. Let her travel and explore to her heart’s content.
But… I can’t.
If she’s seen with me, it will cost her her life. The thought has me darting up from my chair. I pull my wallet out, and taking out some cash, I drop it on the table.
“We’re leaving?” Hailey asks as she gets up.
“Yes.” I grab her bag from the floor and shrug the strap over my shoulder. Taking hold of her hand, I pull her slightly behind me as we leave the restaurant.
My eyes keep scouring our surroundings for any threat. Whenever I spot a CCTV camera, I tug Hailey closer and position my body so she’ll be hidden from it.
“Where are we going?” she asks. Her fingers flex in my hand, and it makes me loosen my grip a little.
“My car.”
A couple of yards later, we reach the SUV, and I unlock the doors. I open the passenger’s side, and when Hailey gets in, I place her bag on her lap. “Stay here. Lock the doors.”
Knowing she’ll be hidden behind the tinted windows and safe in the armored vehicle makes the tension ease a little from my muscles.
When Hailey nods, I add, “I won’t take long.”
I hesitate to leave her.
My eyes dart over her, and on the spur of the moment, I ask, “Can you drive?”
“Yeah. Why?”
“If I’m not back in thirty minutes, go home. I’ll meet you there.”
A frown washes over her forehead. “What?”
“It’s just in case I can’t get away from my friend. I don’t want you sitting here for longer than thirty minutes.”
Or in case things go sideways and I get myself killed, seeing as my focus is not on the contract.
Leaning over her, I press a button on the GPS. “Just follow the directions. Okay?” Pulling back, I look at her, and it’s only then I realize how close our faces are.
“Ah… okay,” she whispers, her gaze dropping to my mouth.
No!
I pull back, and before I shut the door, I say, “Lock it.”
When I hear the click, I turn around and head in the direction of the club. As soon as I’m out of Hailey’s sight, I break into a flat-out sprint.
I come to a stop across the road from Gallery’s entrance and take a couple of seconds to even out my breathing. Rolling my neck from left to right, I force myself to focus on the contract.
Get in. Kill Rudaj. Get out.
I cross the road and fall in behind the line forming at the entrance. A couple of minutes later, I enter the club and wait as one of the bouncers pats me down for weapons.
Once I’m cleared, I slowly make my way to the nearest bar. The interior is filled with blue lights and steel. A crowd is starting to form on the main dance floor.
When the bartender glances at me, I say, “A bottle of water.”
He nods and removes the cap before handing me the bottle. After I’ve paid, I take a sip as my gaze roves over all the people. Slowly, I make my way to the back of the club, and taking note of where the emergency exit is, I head back toward the dance floor.
After a couple of minutes of watching the clubbers, I spot a dealer exchanging drugs for cash, and I move in his direction. When he’s done, I follow him up a set of stairs to a lounge area.
The moment my eyes land on Rudaj, I feel the tension ease a little, and I slip into work mode. He has two other men with him and four women.
My heartbeat slows down, and I focus solely on my target.
I walk to the bar and position myself, so my back is to the table where Rudaj is. Slowly, I sip on the water.
Ten minutes have passed with no one moving from the table, and my muscles begin to tense.
When the time begins to creep close to my thirty minutes being up, worry skirts around the edges of my mind.
I shouldn’t have stopped Hailey when I spotted her outside the restaurant.
Fuck.
I feel movement behind me, and I casually glance toward the table. Rudaj gets up with one of the girls he was sitting with, and they head down a hallway. They pass the restrooms and walk into a room near the end of the hallway.
I wait a minute, so it’s not obvious I’m following Rudaj before calling the bartender over to me. “Throw this away.”
He nods, and I watch as he disposes of the empty bottle before I head in the direction of the restrooms. I pause outside the door and glance over my shoulder to make sure none of his men noticed. Darting forward to the last door, I’m relieved when it opens. If it was locked, I would’ve had to wait even longer or break it down.
The moment I step into the room, Rudaj’s head snaps to me where he’s about to get his dick sucked by the girl. I shut the door, and not sparing the woman a glance, my vision zeroes in on the target as I move forward.
“Fuck off,” he growls at me, but then his face goes lax when recognition sets in. “Fuck.” He shoves the girl away from him and holds his hands up in a surrendering motion. “I can pay more.”
That’s not how it works.
The instant I lunge for him, Rudaj darts away from me. Not that there’s anywhere for him to go. He realizes this and turns on me, pulling a knife from his pocket.
That makes my job easier.
He tries to lunge at me, but I move around him. My arm wraps around his neck, and grabbing hold of his right hand, I force it up and plunge the blade into his neck. I repeat the action three more times before I let go of him and step back. His body drops to the floor, and with weakening fingers, he fumbles with the knife.
The woman’s still on her knees, her face drawn with horror. When she opens her mouth, I shake my head, the look I’m giving her clearly stating if she screams, I’ll kill her.
She quickly covers her mouth with both her hands, and then I look down at Rudaj and make sure he takes his last breath before I rush out of the room. Not wasting time, I break out into a run. I’m halfway down the stairs when the woman alerts everyone upstairs Rudaj has been killed.
When I push through the crowd, I glance back and see Rudaj’s men hurrying down the stairs. I shove people out of my way and bursting out of the club, I run faster than I’ve ever had to, knowing if they follow me, it will place Hailey in danger.
That’s if she hasn’t left. The thirty minutes are up, and hopefully, she listened to me, and she’s safely on her way back to Saint Luc’s.
Running down a street, the men are not far behind me, and I come to a dead stop.
The SUV is parked right around the corner. I can’t risk Hailey.
Turning to face them, I brace myself for a fight. My muscles tighten, and in a split-second, I size them up. The smaller of the two moves with confidence. He’s trained. I need to take him out first.
“Carson?” I hear Hailey call behind me, and the blood drains from my face.
Hailey.
I glance over my shoulder, and the sight of her standing at the end of the street sends a deathly chill through my body.
Christ.
I turn my attention back to the men. “Get back in the car and lock the doors. Now!”
They’re too close for me to check if Hailey’s listening, and not wasting another second, I dart forward. The bigger guy takes a swing at me, and grabbing hold of his arm, I shove him at the smaller one. When they crash into each other, I make a run for the SUV.
Rounding the corner, I see Hailey standing by the passenger’s side. “Get in!”
Thankfully she listens this time, and I hurry to climb in behind the steering wheel. Pressing the button, I start the engine and then pull away as fast as the SUV will go.
“Seatbelt,” I snap at her.
Fuck.
I should’ve canceled the contract.
“Blyad’!” I slam my palm against the steering wheel as I take the quickest route out of the city. I shoot a glare at Hailey. “Why didn’t you leave?”
She shakes her head, her eyes wide on me. “What happened?” Then she spots the blood on my right hand. “Oh, God. Did you get hurt?”
“I’m fine.” My mind races for a lie she would believe. “A fight broke out at the club.”
I keep checking the rearview mirror, making sure we’re not being followed before I steer us in the direction of Saint Luc.
“But you’re okay?” Hailey asks again.
I take a deep breath. “I’m fine.”
I’m far from fine.
This should not have happened.
It’s wrong.
I need to distance myself from Hailey, or I’ll end up getting her killed.
HAILEY
“That’s why I don’t go to clubs. People drink too much, and then fights break out,” I mutter as I relax against the seat.
Wondering who’s blood it is, I ask, “Did you hit someone?”
Carson nods, reverting back to silence.
“In self-defense?”
He nods again.
“I wasn’t going to leave you stranded in Zürich.”
“You should’ve,” he mutters. “Next time, listen to me.”
Next time?
There will be a next time?
The thought makes happiness bubble in my chest, but it quickly fades from the dark expression tightening his features.
“Sorry I didn’t listen,” I murmur, wanting to ease the tension in the car.
The silence falling between us is different than before, and it has everything to do with the dark look that makes Carson seem more like a threat than a friend.
I almost ask him if he’s okay again but bite the words back.
This is definitely not how I hoped the night would play out. I was thinking more along the lines of us getting to know each other. Maybe sharing a kiss. Maybe more.
Not this… coldness.
It only reminds me I hardly know Carson.
Maybe we’re too different?
I steal a glance at him and seeing he looks even grimmer than when he got into the car, I let out a sigh.
I don’t feel like I did anything wrong, so I cross my arms over my chest and revert to staring out the window.
Instead of enjoying the drive with Carson, the road feels endlessly long. By the time he stops in front of my house, I’m so over this night.
“Thanks for the ride,” I mutter as I push the door open.
He just glances at me.
“Bye, Carson.” I shut the door, and it takes a lot of willpower to not glance back as I hear the SUV pull away.
“Well, that sucked,” I mumble under my breath as I unlock the front door.
Walking into the house, I go place my bag on my bed. Even though it’s almost four in the morning, I’m not tired.
I go stand by the window and glance up the road.
It’s for the best if I don’t date anyone while I’m traveling.
Is it?
Really?
That’s what you want?
“No,” I sigh.
Carson is… different. Yes, he ticks all the boxes for hot and attractive, but it’s that something else that’s making me fall for him.
I’m falling for Carson Koslov. The quiet recluse.
That’s why tonight is so upsetting. It feels like I’ve lost all the ground I’ve managed to cover with him.
And I was really hoping for more.
Just more of him.
Turning away from the window, I grab a pair of shorts and a t-shirt from my closet and walk to the bathroom. I take a quick shower, and once I’m dressed, I brush my teeth and tie my hair back in a ponytail.
Hopefully, things aren’t ruined between Carson and me. At the very least, I’d like to remain friends with him.
A weight settles on my heart because, deep down, it feels as if I’ve lost the chance of getting to know Carson better.
